Final Four Weekend As Michigan And UConn Advance, John Fanta Talks CBB + Possibly Taking The UNC Job, Geno Crash Out + National Sports Podcast Topics And Who's Back

Episode of Pardon My Take · April 6, 2026 · 2 h 18 min

Big Cat and PFT Commenter recap the 2026 Final Four, Geno Auriemma's press conference and NBA topics, then John Fanta previews the title game.

Summary

Dan Katz (Big Cat) and PFT Commenter opened with a recap of Final Four Saturday in Indianapolis, where Katz attended in person. They described the Chainsmokers' halftime-style performance as a poor fit for the crowd, praised UConn's ability to answer every Illinois run behind Braylon Mullins, Tarris Reed Jr. and Silas Demery, and called Michigan's win over top-ranked Arizona a near-total demolition. Katz argued Michigan would not lose to anyone if they played as they did against Arizona, while noting UConn's coaching and experience under Dan Hurley give them a path. They also defended playing the Final Four in football stadiums, arguing the complaint is pointless because the event sells 70,000-plus seats, and Katz said the Final Four should permanently be held in Indianapolis.

The hosts criticized Geno Auriemma's post-loss press conference after UConn's women lost, saying his claims about handshakes and a torn jersey were quickly refuted, and noted Dawn Staley's conciliatory quote after UCLA won the women's title. In a national sports podcast segment, they argued the Giannis Antetokounmpo–Milwaukee Bucks relationship is beyond repair after Giannis publicly objected to being held out, and complained about NBA regular-season tanking, citing a stat about record-setting average margins of victory. Who's Back of the Week segments covered the Buffalo Sabres ending a 14-year playoff drought, Craig Counsell struggling with a dip, Joe Adell's three home-run robberies, and a MrBeast streamer competition.

John Fanta of NBC Sports joined to preview the national championship, saying Michigan would beat UConn eight times out of ten but that Hurley's teams are relentless, comparing UConn to Jack Nicholson's character in The Shining. He explained the origin of his Twitter Spaces, opposed expanding the NCAA tournament to 76 teams unless mid-majors benefit, and proposed reviving BracketBusters. Fanta named Billy Donovan and Mark Byington as candidates for the North Carolina job, predicted Jon Scheyer would win a title within three years and that Dusty May would eventually coach in the NBA, and repeatedly denied interest as the hosts spent much of the interview jokingly campaigning for him to take the UNC job.

Chapters

  1. 0:40

    Cold open and Chainsmokers at the Final Four

    The hosts introduce the episode and debate the Chainsmokers' performance at Lucas Oil Stadium.

  2. 7:16

    UConn beats Illinois

    Katz and PFT break down UConn's semifinal win, Illinois's shooting struggles and UConn's defense.

  3. 16:16

    Michigan demolishes Arizona

    The hosts analyze Michigan's blowout of top-ranked Arizona, Elliot Cadeau's intentional misses and Dusty May's scouting stunt.

  4. 29:45

    Coaching carousel and Final Four venues

    Discussion of Tommy Lloyd's new Arizona deal, Dusty May's statement, and why the Final Four will always be in football stadiums.

  5. 40:33

    Geno Auriemma crash out and UCLA women's title

    The hosts criticize Auriemma's press conference, discuss Dawn Staley's quote and UCLA's dominant championship run.

  6. 45:19

    National sports podcast topics: Giannis and NBA tanking

    They argue the Bucks and Giannis must separate and complain about the state of the NBA regular season.

  7. 59:38

    Who's Back of the Week

    Segments on the Buffalo Sabres, turtles, Craig Counsell's dip, Joe Adell and a MrBeast streamer event.

  8. 1:16:23

    John Fanta on the Final Four and Twitter Spaces

    Fanta gives his takeaways from Saturday and explains how his Twitter Spaces began.

  9. 1:25:25

    Tournament expansion debate

    Fanta and the hosts argue against expanding to 76 teams and propose mid-major-focused alternatives and BracketBusters.

  10. 1:32:35

    Championship game preview

    Fanta compares UConn to The Shining and predicts Michigan would win eight of ten meetings.

  11. 1:38:31

    North Carolina coaching search

    Fanta names candidates while the hosts campaign for him to take the UNC job.

  12. 2:01:41

    Fanta's title game hype call and outro

    Fanta delivers a broadcast-style preview, then the hosts close with Masters mini golf, lottery balls and birthdays.

Key points

What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.

People

In the conversation

  • Dan KatzBarstool Sports personality known as Big Cat, co-host of Pardon My Take
  • PFT CommenterBarstool Sports writer and co-host of Pardon My Take
  • John FantaNBC Sports college basketball broadcaster

Discussed

Topics

More from Pardon My Take

From the publisher

Final Four Saturday and we recap the games as UConn advances to another National Title and Michigan looks absolutely unstoppable. Big Cat was at the game Saturday and we talk Chainsmokers and basketball in a Football Stadium (00:00:00-00:40:20). Geno crashes out Friday night and the UCLA Women win it all. We talk some national sports podcast topics as Giannis in Milwaukee might actually be over (00:40:20-00:58:48). Who's back of the week including Craig Counsell struggling to dip and the Sabres in the postseason (00:58:48-01:15:14). John Fanta joins us to talk Final Four, preview the National Title game and throw his hat in the ring for the North Carolina opening (01:15:14-02:06:27). We finish with lottery ball and birthdays. You can find every episode of this show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Netflix. Prime Members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. For more, visit barstool.link/pardon-my-take

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 27, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: Basketball·Sports News·Comedy